Zamboanga City standoff not a religious war—ARMM gov

As more Muslim pilgrims arrived in Cebu to catch their flights to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia yesterday, a top official of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) urged the public not to inject religion into the Zamboanga City standoff.

In issuing his appeal, ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman said there are “some people who are taking advantage of the situation to further their own interests.”

“But let us look at it carefully; this is a matter of terrorism being sown that the government was fighting against,” Hataman said in response to reports of rising animosity between Muslims and Christians in Zamboanga City.

He said the violence, involving followers of Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) founder Nur Misuari, was not affecting only followers of a particular religion but all of Zamboanga City.

In fact, Hataman said, most of those displaced were Muslims.

“Look at the population of Rio Hondo, Sta. Catalina, Kasanyangan and Sta. Barbara, majority is made up of Muslims. The barangay captains are mostly Muslims,” he said.

He also cited the situation in Basilan. “Mostly Muslims are affected, so where is the religious color there?” Hataman added.

An additional 229 Muslim pilgrims arrived yesterday on board an airforce C-130 plane from Zamboanga City at the Benito Ebuen Air Base to catch their flights to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for their Hajj mission.

The pilgrims arrived in two batches said Lt. Col. Marciano Jesus Guevara, chief of Civil Military Operations of the Air Force’s 2nd Air Division.

“If (higher-ups) order us to do so, then we would still assist those pilgrims from Zamboanga,” he said.

Buses were provided by the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) to fetch them from the base.

All left for Manila en route to Saudi Arabia on board Saudia Airlines at 5 p.m yesterday.

Their Hajj mission will last for 30 days or one month at the Mecca.

Attending a pilgrimage at the Mecca is a religious activity required of every fit Muslim at least once in his or her lifetime.

In Zamboanga City, the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s operations center reported that 62,329 persons are now staying in 20 evacuation centers in the city.

“A lot of people, about 90 percent Muslims, are suffering from this man-made calamity that Misuari is answerable for,” Hataman said.

Hataman warned residents of Zamboanga City and Mindanao in general not to be misled by deceptive tactics aimed at driving deeper the wedge between Muslims and Christians.

“We need to be informed properly and not to believe in deceptions,” he said.

“At this stage and all stages in life, unity and prayer are still the most powerful weapons of all. Let us unite against terrorism and let us pray that this would be over soon,” the ARMM governor added. Inquirer with a report from Correspondent Michelle Joy L. Padayhag